Dell’s Concept Luna is an initiative to design a laptop that’s easier to repair and upgrade, allowing you to keep using your computer for longer while reducing waste and the overall environmental footprint of your device.

Unfortunately Concept Luna has only been a proof-of-concept since it was first unveiled a year ago. And that’s not changing just yet… but Dell has updated the concept, making it even easier to repair. The company is showing off a Concept Luna prototype that can be disassembled in minutes without the need for any tools.

That’s because this laptop prototype uses no screws and no adhesive to hold components in place. There aren’t even cables that need to be detached.

Not only would  that make it easier for individuals or repair professionals to replace a cracked screen or a dying battery, but Dell notes that it can take a computer recycling facility more than an hour to break down a typical laptop, but the latest Concept Luna device can be torn down in a fraction of that time.

The company has also designed a “micro-factory” system that could use robots to quickly open up Concept Luna laptops for repairs or recycling.

Unfortunately for the second year in a row, Concept Luna is still just a concept. Dell says it’s part of the company’s long-term vision, but there are currently no plans to put Luna-inspired hardware into production.

For now the Framework Laptop is probably still your best bet if you’re looking for an easily repairable and upgradeable laptop.

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9 replies on “Dell’s latest Concept Luna update is an ultra-repairable laptop (that you can’t actually buy)”

  1. What’s funny is this isn’t anything new, most manufacturers just avoided going this way because repairability and customization are bad for business. Not that they will actually go to market with this, it’s sort of just another piece of greenwashing at this point in time.

  2. I do wonder how much demand there would be for something like this in actuality.

    Obviously there’s a sweet spot somewhere away from Apple’s approach and a sort of OpenBook vibe. But I don’t think many of the people I know would actually bother with this apart from the diehard tech heads. Who would probably want to use a desktop for power use and modularity.

    Maybe I’m wrong, but just my views!

    1. I feel like this would be useful for those low/midrange laptops that are like 3/4″ thick and don’t cost too much. having standardized parts among all of their models could reduce manufacturing cost which can be passed onto the end user – who could upgrade or replace aging components over time. instead of buying a new $600 laptop every four years you could buy one and maybe get $300 of upgades or replacement components every 4 years

  3. Call me cynical, but I don’t believe that Dell is actually going to build a unique product with all/most of these ideas. I think this is just a PR attempt to show a bunch of their design concepts that check all the boxes on the “its 2022 and consumers care about something new” list.

    I think “Luna” is just going to become some kind of branded certification thing, similar to Intel Evo, or “Ultrabook”.

    I think Dell will probably scatter a few of these design philosophies across all of their laptop lines, but I don’t think we’re going to get a line of laptops that are heavily focused on repairability in a way that helps consumers. At best they will help themselves by making their laptops more factory-serviceable.

    We’ll probably see some stuff like “screw assembly only, no glue or snap-tabs”, and swappable batteries. Things that cut down on waste during the process of servicing laptops.

    When people say the word repairability, they want companies to commit to keeping parts onhand for a period of time, and a commitment to use the same chassis design for several generations (to let people swap parts, or do motherboard upgrades).

    I’m unconvinced that Dell is going to do much that truly gives consumers what they want.

  4. I f you take into account value of material put into this devices and if you could recycle all this. Laptops smartphones would be a lot cheaper.
    We basically throw away a lot of money not recycling this.
    Imagine having a tooth made out of gold or silver and after it is damaged you throw it away.
    Not to mention sh*ting our planet.
    Bravo Dell !!!
    And thanks Brad !!!

  5. I see they dispensed with putting the CPU in the lid.
    Compared to the last one, I’m getting way more “humans are worthless” vibes from this one. It’s meant to be so repairable, the whole repair process can be automated. And obviously they don’t care that you might want to put more than one dongle and a charging cable into your laptop, when there’s an entire right side with nothing in it! They didn’t even move the ports far enough apart to fit two usb-c to usb-a dongles next to each other, like you don’t even deserve THAT courtesy.

    1. I’ll take robots any day instead of child labour, or enslaved political prisoners.

      1. How about enslaved politicians and white-collar robbers then?

        /s of course

  6. I gotta say… This does look like absolutely fantastic. Other companies are running out of excuses to not make repairable laptops. Especially Apple, because their highly efficient internals take up so little space that they could still make things easy to repair but obviously we all know Apple’s stance there. This concept from Dell still even has a slotted Wi-Fi card! And the extra space could easily fit expansion hardware or the like. And even with all that, the laptop still looks super sleek.

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